Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Library Video of the Week, April 29, 2013.

A realistic look at the troubles and
turmoil a family faces when a member is diagnosed with mental illness, Canvas is one of those movies that
leaves a lasting impression.

Living in Hollywood, Florida,
John (Emmy winner Pantoliano) is barely making ends meet after his wife, Mary
(Harden) is diagnosed with schizophrenia.On and off her medications, she grows increasingly erratic and
eventually is forcibly institutionalized by the police, leaving her husband and
son to cope with her absence.John’s
health insurance refuses to cover a mental illness, Mary takes one step forward
and one back, but it is the effect on the son, Christopher that takes center
stage.Taunted and embarrassed at school
by kids who call his mom a nut case, angry that his mom is gone and his father
is withdrawing into a backyard boat-building project, the pressure seems
unbearable.Only the strong ties of the
family can keep them all from spinning off the edge of the world.

This is a thoughtful look at
how families deal with terrible events, an ultimately triumphant movie of the
resilient human spirit, without the hackneyed Hollywood ending.